Cable stitch long terrified me. How was it possible? Would I have the patience?
I’ve always found its origins fascinating, even more so now I live in Yorkshire and am often by the sea. The stitch is apparently meant to look like rope, and was originally used for sailors’ gansys- a chunky jumper, to which the cable added weight.
This guy above is loving his….
Men themselves often used to knit these….
And tradition has it that each village has its own pattern.
I’m starting basic. I found some inspiring cables tea cosies on the net:
I thought I’d give it a go. For anyone who hasn’t tried cable it’s a lot easier than it looks. There are loads of YouTube tutorials such as this one here. Be brave and give it a go!
Here is my progress:
The cable rows are a tiny bit of a bore, but you only have to do one about every 10 rows…
I love the look of cables!!!!
Yes! Each village did indeed have its own pattern and, in fact, each individual fisherman had his own unique variation of the pattern. Ganseys are so awesomely interesting. I love knitting them, it’s just they take forever to make because of the tight gauge and lightweight yarn used. Even so, I plan to make yet another gansey in the future! I love reading about ganseys and their history.
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Goodness me. Anyone who can actually make one has my upmost respect!!!!
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It isn’t difficult, it just takes forever.
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Love seeing the old pictures of the fishermen – wish that I could do more than knit and pearl!
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It’s really not that long ago that this was the full range of my repertoire also!!
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Oh wow…your cables look so neat. I love the photo of the men knitting x
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Great post and some lovely cables. I love those old photos . . . why is it that these cabled sweaters are the ultimate in knitting????!
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